Regulating loops, which are superposed or super-ordinated over the actual vehicle regulation or control, are realized in automatic vehicle guidance systems. For example, a vehicle guidance system involves maintaining target pre-specifications for the purpose of the navigation. Particularly, in modern aircraft with automatic regulation, which is realized with the aid of the so called fly-by-wire control systems, autopilot functions are superposed on the flight control functions. In that context, on the basis of a command branch, for example due to the vertical accelerations commanded by the pilot, the regulation or regulating system includes feedbacks for the stabilization of the regulating loop. The autopilot operating modes superposed on these regulation functions in a regulation technical manner can relate to various flight phases, for example to the terrain following flight, in which a prescribed height or elevation above the ground is to be maintained. Also, certain flight paths can be prescribed for navigation or for landing approach procedures, the maintenance of which flight paths is effectuated by the aircraft by means of automatic autopilot operating modes.
Generally, in these autopilot operating modes, for respectively provided application or operating types of the vehicle, typically a nominal or desired parameter, such as a desired speed, a desired altitude, or a prescribed travel direction is adjustedly set, the maintenance of which desired parameter is effectuated by the command branch of the respective autopilot function. Thus, in that context, the pilot has the possibility, dependent on the respective flight situation, to select nominal or desired parameters and to select or call up prescribed operating modes, which the aircraft can then carry out without manual intervention of the pilot.
A disadvantage of these methods is that only a limited number of pre-defined autopilot operating modes is available to the pilot. The functionality of present-day autopilots is limited in future vehicle guidance systems, in which there exist the requirement of an increase of the number of the autopilot operating modes to be provided as well as increased demands on the flexibility of such operating modes.
Flight management systems, with which application or operating phases are run through, which are influenceable, are described in the publications: Rudolf Brockhaus, Flugregelung (Flight Regulation), Springer-Verlag, 1994, ISBN 3-540-554 16-5, chapter 17.4.1 (pages 632–634), chapter 20.3.4 (pages 734–738); DE 37 83 535 T2; DE 196 04 931 A1; and WO 01/48573 A1. It is the object of the invention to provide an automatic vehicle guidance system as well as a method for the carrying out of an automatic vehicle guidance, which is adjustedly settable to a plurality of application or operating modes, with a small effort and expense.